"nobody gives a crap about story..."

I happen to care a lot about the story, as do many others.  Good job generalizing though; it really makes your opinion meaningful when you generalize.  Your rant tells us what *you* want in an MMO, but please don't speak for the rest of us.  I'm certainly capable of forming my own opinion about what I want from a game.  Classes, lots of content and a great story are elements that I look for.

Also, please don't bundle Bioware and Lucasarts into the same group as others ("bandwagoners").  Both of these companies have given us some amazing titles in the past.  I think a lot of people (notice I don't say "everyone") would agree that the X-Wing series and the original KOTOR were both pretty amazing.  Bioware has never done an MMO and they have a long history of releasing quality titles.  Give them a chance to do this and if they fail, then so be it, I'll move on.  I've been disappointed by the industry many times over the last few years, but I'm hoping that Bioware and Lucasarts will pick up the slack and provide me with a game I can play for more than a couple of months.

One of my only hopes for FF XIV is that it's much more fast-paced than XI is.  I love the FF series a lot, but the slow-combat in FF XI really turned me away from it.  Also, I hope they make the control-system for PC different than the one for console to take advantage of us mouse/keyboard users, heh.  That isn't a deal-breaker for me, but it'd be nice; I guess I could use my 360 controller with Windows assuming that the Sony gods won't smite me for it, lol.

Either way, really looking forward to this.

- The character graphics look low-res, I am running 1920x1200 at max video settings and characters still look like poorly stretched bitmaps.

I'm running at 1680x1050 and the graphics look fine. They are using the Unreal 2.5 engine as far as I know, so while the graphics might not be as modern-looking as say, Crysis..the graphics are pretty good in my opinion. I'm wearing gear right new on my 35 AM that looks pretty sweet. "poorly stretched bitmaps"? I'd call that a big exaggeration.

- The environment, although good, looks very samey from area to area.

I disagree.  Slywood looks quite a bit different from Hawksmouth.  Stonedeep is pretty cool-looking (it used to be an ocean) in my opinion.  Have you even seen Green District?  The art direction in this game deserves a reward I think.

- The zones are the same for all classes, this means if you decide to roll one or more alts you will be replaying the same content again... and again... and again.

This is true, I hope they add more zones for every level range, especially the lower levels (under 30).

- At lot of the early quests are kill 10 boars, kill 10 bears, kill 10 wolves, into the next zone kill 10 boars, kill 10 bears, kill 10 wolves... you get the idea.

What MMO doesn't have this?  And actually some of the quest chains are pretty sweet and involve no animal-killing at all.  There's a low-level quest in Hoggsridge where I have to place an eavesdropping device in a tree, then set a tent on fire, then kill a leader, etc.  There are quest chains in this where you do one part at one level-range, then come back later and do another part.  One of the better things about this game is that they use the whole world for every level-range.  I remember having to go back to Hawksmouth in my 30s as part of a quest chain.  It's nice to see those areas that I started in again.

- The boars and bears look very similar (grey/brown sacks?) and at a distance wolves aren't that distinct either.

I agree that there should maybe be more variety in mob types, but it does get a bit better as you level.  Stonedeep has different-looking mobs for example.  But really, almost ALL mmos are like this.

- The game doesn't use itemization like most MMOs, the theme is "dress to impress", woot! Ummm... no not really. This means 15 levels later you will still be wearing the same poorly stretched bitmap clothes you did at the start, the items that you can buy or make are the same items that you could have picked at character creation... huh? ... and best of all there is no character preview option anywhere in the game, so you don't really know what you are buying until you have bought it... that sucks! The idea of not having item stats is a good one, but you really, REALLY need to make it work aesthetically... otherwise, why bother?

WRONG!  My toon looks way different at level 35 than she did at level 1.  I have a helmet that I've seen very few other people wearing; the recipe was given to me by a guildie.  The sword I'm wearing is pretty sweet-looking as well.  Most of the stuff I'm wearing I either made through crafting or got as a quest-reward.  The guildies and other friends I play with also look a lot different than they did when I first started playing with them.  The fact that you can change your look whenever you want may not appeal to you, but it does appeal to a lot of others.  As for previewing stuff, when you pick up a new item you can preview it by taking it to the dyer (even if it's above your level).  You can also preview it when buying something from a NPC vendor.  Granted, I'd like them to add the ability to preview from a recipe, but that may come later. Having a game that isn't gear-based is refreshing.

- You are supposed to be able to enhance items with "sigils", so far I have only received 1 sigil as a quest reward, +0.5% healing....

The sigils get better.  I have a total of a 6% bonus to my run speed, which stacked with my pep level, actually does make a difference.  The sigils get better as you level.  One of my primary skills has a 10% bonus to damage output.

- European servers... what can i say? Tumbleweed...

Don't play on them, so I can't comment.  But the NA servers are more populated than they were a few weeks ago.

In general this game has some really good ideas, some different stuff, innovative stuff, that makes you think, yeah this is cool. They just haven't got the variety of content to back it up. I want to like this game, but at level 15 I feel bored... I've played too long for everything to still feel the same, to be wearing the same outfit, to be killing the same boars, to not have run a dungeon or equivalent (because there aren't any, sorry maybe one? high level?). I don't feel like I have anything to look forward to.

You can do Exarch at level 20 (if memory serves) which is pretty cool.  At level 15, it's kind of hard to judge the game.  I think they've done a great job so far.  Sure, more content is needed and a few more other features, but this game as caught me more than any other MMO has over the last few years.  I'm thrilled that they didn't make another damn WoW clone.

I'm currently playing Spellborn and am loving it.  Manual targeting and dodging is what's keeping me drawn to it.  Give it a shot, they're offering two free weeks to everyone right now with no limitations.  Give it to level 10 before you make a final judgement though as the combat system does take some getting used to.

Hope to see you there!

Overall, I love TCoS.  The sound and graphics are excellent. I love the fact that I don't have to pick a target, I can just point at a mob and use a skill.  I love that I can attack a group, then move on to another group, then another without much pause.  It's a game that has a lot of unique things going for it.

What I'd like added are things that are most likely going to get added anyway. 

- a quest tracker

- the ability to move UI elements

- more options for clothing/armour/physical features during character development

- the ability to skip the tutorial

- the ability to enhance gear earlier into the game

Overall, they've done a great job I think.  The fact that I was just entering combat the other day when the client crashed and I thought I'd be dead when I logged back in and wasn't was amazing.  It shows that the devs have put a lot of work into TCoS.

Originally posted by Zayne3145

What is with all these 'WAR is the best game evar!!!' and 'WAR IZ BEST MMORPG!!1!' posts? This kind of unashamed fanboyism is actually making me want to play the game less.

Agreed.  One of the reasons I got burnt out on WoW after 3 years is the constant barrage of kiddies insulting my intelligence with the worst spelling and grammar I've ever seen.  PUGs were a nightmare because there was rarely a sense of teamwork; everyone was concerned for their own loot drops, etc.

Granted, I met a lot of cool people too and did get into groups with them that worked out nicely. 

My point is that if WAR already has that type of community, then that's one reason for me to not play it.  I'm also not a big fan of PVP, so that's another reason.

If you like WAR, then great, enjoy it.  But please stop the childish "WAR rulez! I am gunna pwnz u!!!1!!!!" posts.  We get it, you like the game.  But try expressing your opinion in an already active post, instead of flooding the boards with redundancy.

Non-consentual PVP and the harsh death penalty.  Yeah I know that's two.

When I did play EVE, I lost a ship in PVP because I got disconnected. When I came back in, I was dead and had lost a nice ship that I worked very hard for. Sure, I guess I could have sent in a petition, but I figured there wasn't much point as GMs don't typicially hand out things for free.

I realize that CCP is very up-front about the PVP rules and the death penalty; overall, I think the game is great. But, I've never been a fan of PVP and the fact that a player has to work harder for what they have (in comparison to other MMOs) should justify a leaner death penalty. Yes, I am aware of the insurance thing, but that still involves flying around to get a new ship and equipment, etc.

If EVE started up a second server with consentual PVP, I'd play it forever. Call me a carebear if you want, makes no difference to me. I'm just voicing an opinion here. Thanks for reading.

I can't believe I read a question as stupid as that.  Wait, I work in computer retail, so actually I can believe it.  Siiigghhh...okay, well you should choose real life over a game...always.  It's only a game.  I love them myself, but I also know when to put it away and socialize with my real life friends.

Just my two cents...

I've played EVE on and off since launch and I love it, mostly for the exploring.  If Crytic makes STO have the same scope as EVE (5300+ star systems, etc), and have consentual PVP, I'll probably play it for years.

Make us proud, Cryptic!

Has anyone heard any hints about what time the servers go live?

If my friends came over and saw that I WASN'T using Firefox, I'd get ripped on. 

Firefox + NoScript + AdBlockPlus =

The only thing IE should be used for is Windows updates, and if you have Vista you don't even need it for that.

Intel Q6600 quad-core

nVidia 8800GTS 640MB

4GB (actually 3.25, lol) of RAM

2TB of disk space spread out over 4x 500GB SATA2 drives (I loves my BT)

BenQ G2400 24" LCD display

...all ready for AoC...mwahahaha

There are so many that I want to try, but I think the first two will be Demonologist and Ranger.  Dark Templar, Assassin, Necro and Guardian all sound cool to me as well though.

I won't be playing Warhammer because EA is involved.  I don't buy EA games unless I absolutely have to (ie: Spore).  They're an evil company that needs to die.

I got my hopes up for Vanguard; I couldn't wait to play it....

....then the bad stuff happened.

Anyway, I played AO for a few years and really liked it; it was my first MMO.  Funcom did a great job on that game and I'm hoping for the same in AoC.  I'll probably buy it right away and may even preorder it, but I'm going to try not to get all hyped up...just in case...

IMHO, it's the responsibility of the person playing to run their own life.  If you're the kind of person who needs a game to tell you when to stop playing it, then perhaps you should find another hobby.  Furthermore, anyone who blames a game (or any other form of entertainment) for pain and suffering in their (or someone else's) life obviously has some pretty major issues.

If I've been gaming for a few hours and I start to feel hungry...then I eat; if I start to feel tired...then I take a break.  I think that having health and safety recommendations listed on a game console (Nintendo Wii), or the game itself is certainly a good idea, but should the game company be held responsible for their clients' health and well-being?  No.

Just my two coppers.